If Wishes Came True...New Adult Fiction @ JCPL!

I wish I had a nickel for every time I start a sentence with the words, “I wish…” I wish it would only rain at night and that the sun would shine all day long…I wish the wind would stop blowing; it’s giving me a stretch of bad hair days like no other; I wish the pollen count were not so high (sniff, sniff). But, alas, the world is not a wish granting factory, and this is a direct quote from a book that I read recently.

So true, that statement, made by a teenager stricken with cancer, who, I know for fact after reading the book, “The Fault In Our Stars” by John Green, wished for many things much more complicated than a change in the weather. Such a good, awe-inspiring read, with believable characters who, as you delve deeper and deeper into the story, you cheer for, and truly wish only the best for.

In this young adult, fiction title, you’ll meet Augustus Waters, a philosophical teenager who falls for Hazel Grace, a teenage girl with whom Augustus shares a common bond; they both have cancer. Meeting at a Cancer Support Group, the pair begin a friendship, finding even more common ground when Hazel inspires Augustus (Gus, for short) to read her favorite book, “An Imperial Affliction,” the story of Anna, a young girl who also has cancer. Because “An Imperial Affliction” ends abruptly and leaves the reader hanging, both Gus and Hazel decide they would like to meet the author, reclusive Peter Van Houten, and the pair of them arrange to travel to Amsterdam to meet him and pick his brain for ideas of how the story may have ended. Now, I wish I could tell you the rest and how the story ends, but, my best advice is that you go to your local branch of JCPL, check the book out and revel in the drama for yourself. While you are there, I really wish you would check out some other great, new fiction titles to read after you reach the end of this one, so read on for more to add to your already growing wish list!

The devotion that Jillian Kane feels for her young children, Drew and Addie, moves her to leave her abusive and domineering husband, Gordon. Knowing that she is taking her life in her hands, she feels she must take a leap of faith, leaving behind the illusion of the storybook life that everyone believes she has been living. Fleeing with no money, no plan, and Gordon in hot pursuit, Jillian knows only one thing for certain; Gordon will kill her and take her children if she makes one wrong move and allows him to catch up with her. “Hush Little Baby” by Suzanne Redfearn takes the reader into the shame and degradation felt by women who are abused by their husbands, and who, out of desperation and love for their children, play the high-stakes game of leaving that life in exchange for peace and safety.

The death of Elizabeth Hampton’s mother, Leslie, leaves Elizabeth bereft as well as responsible for her disabled brother, Ronnie. When it is discovered that Leslie did not die of natural causes, but was strangled, Ronnie becomes the chief suspect. Given to sudden outbursts, it is believed that Ronnie possibly lost control and murdered his mother, but as the investigation moves forward, and Leslie’s will is read, a stranger comes into play, and there seem to be more questions than answers in “Never Come Back” by David J. Bell.

Harper Jennings is not superstitious. Visiting Israel along with her husband, Hank, while he attends a symposium, Harper and her baby, Chloe, are shopping in a market along with their guide, Hagit when Harper’s attention is drawn to an American man who appears to be in trouble. Because she has the baby with her, Harper decides not to interfere, only to realize later that the man was murdered. Harper then decides that she and Chloe will be safer away from the market and takes an offer to take part in an archaeological dig, but Hagit is convinced it is the “evil eye,” and that danger will follow them in “Outside Eden,” book number 4 in the Harper Jennings series by Merry Jones.

If a genie came along and offered me three wishes, what would I wish for? My wish list is long, but to be realistic, my one wish for today would be to sit peacefully on a beach with a true and loyal companion by my side; and since dogs are not always allowed on the beach, my next choice would be a good book, one that fulfills my wish to be taken away; one from my local branch of JCPL!